THE ROYAL CITY

A remnant of the past, the royal city occupies a large part of Old Muscat, the oldest historical district of the city along with Mutrah. It was from this original small fishing port that Muscat became the prosperous city it is today. The fortifications and defensive buildings, restored in 1979 at the request of Sultan Qaboos, date back to the 16th century, the time of the Portuguese presence in Muscat. Three gates (Bab al-Kabir, Bab al-Saghir and Bab al-Mathaib) line the city and delimit the oldest section. One quickly falls under the charm of this small district which seems like a neat village in the heart of the capital: renovated houses, flowery sidewalks, immaculate streets... an Eden on the edge of the Arabian Sea! We understand why some ministries still remain there, like the one of Finance with its golden door. All the sights being held in a rather restricted perimeter, one discovers the city on foot, and why not a second time in the evening when the clever lighting of the buildings and the mountains lends itself particularly to an aesthetic and peaceful stroll. On site, three monuments are not to be missed: the two forts Al-Mirani and Al-Jalali, and the Qasr al-Alam, one of the residences of His Majesty the late Sultan Qaboos, now owned by the new Sultan Haïtham ben Tariq. This last palace, quite astonishing and of loaded style, is preceded by a huge esplanade framed by long buildings with arcades. It cannot be visited, but its flamboyant exterior architecture allows one to imagine the sumptuousness of its interior spaces and decorations. Large gold and blue columns reach for the sky, surrounded by beautiful beds of orange and purple bougainvillea, and armfuls of roses, one variety of which bears the name of the former sultan. The three monuments stand on the seafront, between ochre-colored rocks. To get there, you have to pass through one of the gates (ideally the one of Baba al-Mathaib, the closest one) and go to the water's edge, at the level of the cornice where you can find: on the left, the harbor; on the right, the Al-Mirani fort and the palace; and, in front of it, even more on the right, the Al-Jalali fort. Proudly standing on small escarpments, the two citadels are not to be visited either. The first one now houses the royal guard, while the second one is used by the army. From the cornice, one can see the names of the ships that passed through Muscat and left their mark on the cliffs bordering the port. The oldest inscription dates from 1876.